Everyone Dreams of Playing Cards for Candy
by Balin Lord of Moria
Summary: Kid-friendly short story of Officer Keith Robinson in Vice Unit enjoying taking down illegal gambling during one day. Then he meets a curious boy who wants to know if all gambling is evil. Is it? The answer may be surprising.


**Everyone Dreams of Playing Cards for Candy**

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Once upon a time, a police officer named Keith Robinson served the Lytton Police Department as a Vice Squad detective. He was a very smooth and relaxed kind of guy who did his job to protect and serve the public, and had once been the partner of the famous cop Sonny Bonds.

One day Keith came to his shift in the Police Department's Vice office and was given orders by his lieutenant to seek and stop any illegal gambling in the city. So he sat at his desk first and went through evidence about the whereabouts of places where gambling was hot.

Then he got in his unmarked patrol car and hit the streets. First, he came to an alley between two stores and saw two kids gambling with cash and dice. With the help of his partner, he captured and arrested the two troublemakers. The public cheered him on.

An hour later, they were called to an apartment building and found three young men participating in online gambling together. Keith and his partner flashed their badges, and the men gave up without a fight, though one of them asked what was so wrong with gambling for fun on the computer.

"Son," said Keith, "anyone can rip you off with online gambling. There are unsavory people who steal money in massive amounts from people who think they're just involved in some innocent game."

The perpetrators were hauled to jail and charged with illegal gambling.

Later, Keith got his most exciting action that day. An illegal casino had been located in the Hotel Delphoria's back rooms for the first time since the Jesse Bains arrest. Police had sealed off the area, and Keith was to go in and clean up the back rooms of its gamers, which he did.

Once again, the Hotel Delphoria was cleared of its card tables, and the people of Lytton cheered.

A child in the crowd noticed Keith and asked him, "Officer, sir, is all gambling wrong? You cops seem determined to bring it down in every shape and form. I've even heard from some religious people that it's a sin. Is gambling all that bad?"

Keith thought about it for a moment. "Well, son," he said, "first of all, you're not the right age to gamble; that age is 21 and over. As for the badness of gambling, it's addictive, it often drains you of your money, it corrupts many people, and it's often used to serve criminal purposes. And the only parts of America where it's always legal are Nevada, Atlantic City, certain Indian casinos, and certain riverboats. It's a dangerous thing to do for many people, especially if it's a business."

"Oh, no," said the boy. "I had had a dream of one day becoming a card shark for a living, but now I'm not so sure I can do that."

"Well, gambling isn't always bad, if that's any comfort," said Keith. "If you have the willpower to avoid addiction, if it's fair, everyone has a reasonable chance of winning, there's no fraud, and no one knows the outcome of the bet before it's spoken at the game, it's relatively safe. But even with that, if you don't live in Nevada or Atlantic City, it's best to limit your gambling to personal, at-home games with people you trust, like friends and family, and don't show it off in places where the police patrol the streets or hide it in underground locations."

"Are you sure that's true?" asked the boy.

"It's what the Lytton Police Force believes," said Keith, "That back room gambling in the hotel was funding criminal activities, and that's why it's illegal. I play poker once or twice a week with some cop buddies from first shift, but it's a hobby, not a business. And our superiors don't arrest or admonish us for it. Besides, I was raised Catholic, and they believe that if the above things I mentioned about good gambling are true, then gambling is not a sin. Even Jesus' apostles gambled once in Acts 1:26 for a replacement for Judas. It's a little hard to explain how some gambling is all right in part, but one must proceed with caution when gambling. Either you must live where it's legalized, or you must be discreet about it without doing it as a crime."

"Hey, thanks for the tip, officer," the boy said.

"No problem," Keith said, "And my name's Keith. But for now, I suggest you enjoy innocent games likes Yahtzee, War, and Crazy Eights to entertain yourself, not to mention Solitaire games."

"I'll remember that, Officer Keith," the boy waved, and walked away as Keith got involved with the crime scene again.

Another day, another lesson taught in one of the moral issues of the Vice Squad.

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**THE END**

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**A/N:** My understanding of illegal gambling isn't perfect, but I tried my best to talk about it accurately here.


End file.
